Jazz band members wait for their next cue during the 2014 Christmas Concert.

A near capacity crowd at the Jesuit High School Auditorium was treated to a spirited performance on Dec. 6 by the Jesuit and Ursuline Combined Chorus, the Jesuit Concert Band, and the Jesuit Jazz Band, as well as some dazzling special effects.

The chorus, under the co-direction of Jesuit’s Mrs. Kate Arthurs-Goldberg and Ursuline’s Ms. Helen Honoree Myers, kicked off the evening with a program that included Thirty Second Fa La La, Adeste Fideles, It’s Beginning To Look A lot Like Christmas, and Hallelujah Chorus.

The concert band then took the stage, its members showing no signs of weariness after their late night at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome the previous evening. Under the direction of Mr. Joseph Caluda ’79, the band played a four-song set of And All The Bells Shall Ring, Do You Hear What I Hear, White Christmas, and a medley of symphonic highlights from the movie Frozen. For the final piece, Auditorium Manager and special effects guru Mr. D.J. Galiano ’07, actually managed to make it snow indoors to the delight of the multi-generational crowd.

Caluda gave a shout out to Galiano’s can-do attitude in remarks to the audience, noting that whenever he asks Galiano about trying something new, his response is something along the lines of: “We can do that, and why don’t we do this, too?”

The final group of the evening was the Jesuit Jazz Band, under the direction of Mr. Jason Giaccone and his ever-changing arsenal of hats. Giaccone led the band through a rollicking set that included Kings of Swing, String of Pearls, Zat You Santa Claus, and Jingle Bell Rock.

View the concert program.